Saturday, 6 January 2018

Mandakani Yoga

A few weeks ago I attended a restorative yoga class at Mandakani Yoga in Corunna. It had been months since I attended an actual yoga class, I do my own practice at home from time to time but normally stick to what I know at a pace that is comfortable. I was super excited to check out my friend Shannon's new studio and take one of her classes that I chose my class based on the time slot, not so much the type of practice I wanted.

Shannon offers a wide variety of classes for beginners to advanced yogis, you can check out her schedule here and I have taken classes taught by Shannon before and loved them, so I knew I would like anything she teaches.

Restorative yoga is a slower pace class, focusing on just a few poses and relaxing into each one for longer periods of time. I was not prepared for this class mentally. I went into it thinking it would be relaxing but it turned out to be extremely mentally challenging for me. There were points in the class where I experienced guilt for not being more productive with my time on the mat or away from my family, my mind drifted to; to do lists and even some other emotions I didn't enjoy. It took me at least half the class to slow my mind down.

After class I had an opportunity to chat with Shannon and share some of the emotions I experienced during the class. She put me at ease that I wasn't alone in my challenges with this style of yoga. I always learn so much when I am on my yoga mat and when I challenge myself through my practice and that doesn't always mean in the form of a fancy pose. Shannon didn't realize but that night she created a space for me to feel some stuff I was avoiding and face a fact that I need to be more conscious about how fast I move.

I can't wait to take another yoga class at Mandakani, take a time out, face some challenges and learn something new. If you have never tried yoga, and especially if you live in Corunna, you need to check this place out.